


Shut Me Out

by emeraldxcity



Category: Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Birdflash - Freeform, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-12
Updated: 2016-01-12
Packaged: 2018-05-13 08:52:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5702449
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/emeraldxcity/pseuds/emeraldxcity
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Wally and Dick's friendship is falling apart and it all started with lack of communication and a locked window. Will the pair fix things before their friendship is permanently damaged or is it already too late?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Shut Me Out

A cackle echoes through one of the many streets in Central City, interrupting the previously quiet night. The source of the cackle cannot be seen, but if anyone had heard it before, they would know who it was.

Robin, the boy wonder.

One might wonder what Gotham's young hero was doing in Central City if they _could_ identify the chilling sound that had cut through the air only seconds ago, and if anyone asked, Robin would tell them _hero business_. Though, it was a complete lie, just like it had been any other time he'd told it. If Robin was ever in Central at night, it was so Dick Grayson could see Wally West, but the world didn't need to know that.

He reaches the house he'd had his mind set on the entire time, going to the left side of the house and scaling up the side until he's got his arms resting on a familiar windowsill, holding his body up for a moment so he can open the window. The only problem is, when he tries, the window doesn't open. It's locked. This seems odd for the boy wonder, Wally _never_ locked his window, not since Dick had started sneaking over after patrols. He's about to pull a tool out of his utility belt to unlock the window from the outside movement catches his eyes. The boy strains to see inside the dark room and can make out the familiar shape of Wally laying on his bed with his back to the window. Robin bites his lip lightly, contemplating whether to go ahead and get the window open himself and risk getting attacked by either Wally or his aunt or uncle, or to just try and get the speedster's attention. After a few silent seconds of contemplation, he taps the window extremely lightly with his knuckles and he sees Wally tense. The movement is small and would have gone unnoticed to the untrained eye and after several seconds, Robin realizes he isn't going to move again. Wally locked the window on purpose, he's ignoring him on purpose too.

For a moment he wonders if they'd been caught or something and his aunt and uncle had locked the window, but if that was the way it was, then why wouldn't Wally have texted him or at least acknowledge his presence at the window? He stays there, clinging to the windowsill for several minutes before his arms start growing tired and he realizes that his entire trip to Central City had been a complete and utter waste because apparently his best friend was angry at him for some unknown reason. He climbs down a little ways before leaping to the ground and diving into a roll. Once he's back on his feet, the boy wonder chances one last look at the window and now the curtains are closed, still slightly swaying where the speedster had closed them and Dick hates the way those swaying curtains make his chest tighten in an odd way because he can't help but to feel that somehow this was all his fault.

Weeks pass by and things are definitely different between Robin and Kid Flash, everyone can see it, though Wally pretends as if nothing is wrong and Dick isn't sure if that makes him angry or sad. Maybe a little of both.

Anytime the boy wonder visits Central City after that (and more specifically Wally's aunt and uncle's house) he's met with a locked window and closed curtains and left with no answers. He's tried asking Wally about it, only to get brushed off and given a weak excuse of his bedroom window being stuck shut or his aunt finding out about Dick coming over uninvited and locking the window and even with all the training given to him by Batman, Robin still can't figure out what he's done that's bad enough to lose his best friend.

It's nearly six months later when Dick can't stand it anymore. He still hasn't figured out what happened and it's killing him inside and Wally's not giving him any answers. The two lash out at each other a lot on missions, more than usual and it's gotten to the point Kaldur has to separate them on missions so they don't start a fight and Batman definitely wasn't happy about it, telling Dick he shouldn't let personal spats get in his way in the field but Bruce just doesn't understand. His best friend hadn't locked him out of his room for no reason, so he couldn't possibly relate to the situation, at least in Dick's stubborn mind. Though after a few more missions, he does realize that Bruce was actually right and it's his refusal to fight with Wally that seemingly makes the speedster explode and it's almost satisfying for the boy wonder, to see him get so frustrated after he's been frustrated with the older boy for six whole months.

When he goes back to Gotham that night, he's slow changing out of his costume and into his civilian clothes. He's slow eating dinner and taking a shower and getting ready for bed too, lost in his own thoughts because even though they'd been arguing for half a year now, at least it was _something_. They still had **something**. But Wally had made it perfectly clear that after today, there was going to be _nothing_ and that hurt more than the locked window and the closed curtains. Kid Flash had been Robin's first friend in costume, the first person he could show his hero side too and after he'd shared his identity with Wally, he was the only person other than Bruce and Alfred with whom he could share _everything_. There were no secrets, no double lives, it was just Dick Grayson and Wally West and Robin and Kid Flash. Now that was gone and he was left alone, the confusion over the past few months having clouded that fact until now. He was all alone again with no one to talk to, no one to confide in or share inside jokes with.

The boy sits down on his bed, pulling his knees up to his chest and letting out a quiet sigh. He stays this way for nearly an hour before he finally decides to lay down and try to get some sleep. Just as his head touches the pillow, he hears the faintest of noises. He's already out of his bed and reaching for his utility belt when he hears it again and looks over at the window, seeing a familiar tuft of red hair and two hands practically clawing at his windowsill to keep the body they were attached to from falling. The dark haired boy slinks over to the window, easily pushing it open before crossing his arms over his chest. “Little help here?” The intruder asks, looking up at him with a shy sort of grin and Dick just frowns. “What are you doing here, Wally?” “If I say it's to apologize will you pull me up or let me fall to my death?” The Grayson boy stares at the speedster for another long moment before letting out a huff and grabbing the boy's arms, helping to pull him inside. The two stand in silence for a long time, both seemingly refusing to be the first to speak until the older of the two males finally gives in.

 “I'm sorry.” 

Dick scowls at the apology, glaring at the boy. “Mind telling me exactly what you're sorry for because while I can name at least ten things you _should_ be apologizing for, I still don't know what started this whole mess in the first place.” He's quiet, though he'd much prefer yelling at the speedster in that moment, but Alfred might be making his rounds and the last thing he needed was for Bruce to know Wally had snuck into the manor.

 “Because I'm an idiot.”

 “That's not good enough.”

 “I know.” Silence falls between the pair again as Wally struggles to find the right words to explain himself and not get _literally_ kicked out the window through which he'd entered the room.

 “Why'd you shut me out, Wally? If you wanted me out then.... you could have just said, 'Rob I don't want to be friends anymore' instead of leaving me hanging literally on your windowsill without a single explanation.” Before he's even finished talking, he can already see the guilt on Wally's face and that _almost_ makes him regret saying anything at all.

“I was afraid.” The speedster finally replies, looking anywhere but Dick's accusatory face. “I was afraid of letting you in.” And though he could have easily been talking about the window, the boy wonder knew he wasn't. “What are you talking about? We already tell each other everything, unless you've kept something-”

“I _have_ kept something from you.”

The statement shuts Dick up immediately and has him looking away too. He can't help but feel betrayed by the confession after everything he'd told Wally about himself, everything he'd confided to the boy, and apparently his 'best friend' didn't find him trustworthy enough to know all of his secrets and while Dick knew it was selfish of him to just _expect_ trust back, it still hurt.

"So you felt guilty about not telling me and decided it'd be better just to ditch me than to have to keep a secret.” The shorter teen concludes, glancing up at Wally who's quickly shaking his head.

“No! I mean... sort of but... that's not really it, Dick.” The speedster sighs and runs his hands through his hair as he starts pacing in front of the window looking completely and utterly distraught, heavy on the _dis_.

The bird watches him pace quietly, trying to be patient enough to give Wally the time to get his thoughts together so Dick could _finally_ get a real explanation.

“Listen-” the older teen finally says, coming to a stop in front of the darker haired boy and looking down at him. “I really like you and not in a.... I like you as a person sort of way....” It's hard to tell in the dark room, but Dick is _sure_ the older teen is blushing and he's also very sure his own face is heating up.

“What?”

“I like you, okay? That's... that's what I was keeping from you... why I tried to distance myself.”

Dick stands there silently for a few moments before finally saying, “You're an idiot.”

Wally blinks several times, staring at the younger boy with wide green eyes. “What?”

“You're an idiot.” Dick repeats, his arms finally falling back to his sides instead of where they'd been crossed defensively over his chest before. “Why didn't you just say something?” People got crushes on other people all the time and with as close and personal the two had been with each other for several years now, it was unsurprising feelings were there. Dick would be lying if he'd said he didn't have a huge crush on the speedster since he was twelve.

“Why didn't I- Because! You were supposed to react differently! I don't know, be disgusted or something or... laugh at me!” The younger boy raises an eyebrow. “Don't look at me like that! I'm serious!” The red head replies frantically as Dick sighs and shakes his head.

“Why would I do that, Wally? I like you too.”

“You... do?”

“Yeah, of course. You're my best friend...” The boy replies, suddenly getting slightly nervous as he starts to rub the back of his neck (which he had quite the bad habit of doing) “And I mean... you're attractive and funny.... I'd be an idiot not to _like_ you.”

“Oh...”

They stand in silence once more as they both let it sink in that this entire catastrophe could have been avoided if one of them would have confessed their attraction to the other prior to six months ago. Robin stood corrected.

They were both idiots.

 

 


End file.
